Uncertainty surrounds anti-money laundering regulations

Almost one year on from the new AML directive coming into force, how have auctioneers have interpreted the rules.

It used to be easy for investors to turn up at an auction unprepared and buy a property without having to demonstrate that their money came from a legitimate source.

“You could walk in from the back of the room, a complete stranger; you were reading the catalogue for the first time; you had done no homework; you just put your hand up,” says Gary Murphy, partner and auctioneer at Allsop Residential. “We’ve sold multimillion-pound properties this way.”